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Countdown to #SOBEWFF! February is our favorite month in Miami as the South Beach Wine and Food Festival and it’s over 65, 000 guests take over Miami Beach and surrounding Miami venues from February 22-26 for 4+ days of Food, Wine, Fun and maybe even a little sun in between all of the over 85 different events and seminars.

Now in its 16th year and hosted by Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits and Florida International University (FIU), the Festival benefits FIU’s Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management and the Southern Wine & Spirits Beverage Management Center. To date, the Festival has raised more than $24 million for the school.

So, where to begin? Here are MIAbites picks for best 12 SOBEWFF events with a focus on some of the amazing local chef talent and local venues featured this year in collaboration with many of your favorite Food Network stars. Many events sell out quickly, so check availability and buy your tickets online at www.sobefest.com. ( Pro Tip- Many of the below events have limited discount tickets available on both Gilt City and Groupon.)

10:00 pm- $95- A Taste Of Brickell City Centre- hosted by Michael and Liz Symon in Miami’s newest venue downtown is a walk around tasting featuring local fare in this sparkling new shopping and dining destination. Brickell City Centre 701 S. Miami Ave. Miami.

Friday February 24th

7:00 pm- $250- Heineken Burger Bash presented by Schweid & Sons and hosted by Rachael Ray - Probably the most famous and “signature” event of SOBEWFF and features burgers from all over the country vying for top honors as Best Burger. Miami winners have included Pincho Factory as People ‘s Choice. North Venue Beachside at The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach- Entrance at 1 Lincoln Road Miami Beach.

7:00 pm- $250- Point Royal Clambake- As part of the Taste of Fort Lauderdale series, Geoffrey Zakarian’s much heralded return to South Florida at Point Royal at The Diplomat in Hollywood hosts the ultimate stationed, walk-around seafood dinner party during the Festival. Join Zakarian and the talented culinary personality Valerie Bertinelli, host of Valerie’s Home Cooking on Food Network together with hosts of Cooking Channel’s Extra Virgin Debi Mazar & Gabriele Corcos, for this sure to be a fun seaside event. Diplomat Resort & Spa 3555 South Ocean Drive, Hollywood.

10:00 pm – $95- Salty, Sweet and Savory- A late night party presented by Thrillist- Popular local artisan donut purveyor, Salty Donut collabs with Bar Lab Cocktails and The Sarsaparilla Club to host this walk around tasting poolside at the Shelborne Miami Beach 1801 Collins Avenue - Entrance on 18th Street Miami Beach.

Saturday February 25th

This is the main day of the festival and there are too many events to list including Goya Foods Grand Tasting Village $225, numerous wine and spirits seminars at The Palms Hotel & Spa, Bellinis and Buddhas, yoga on the lawn at the Loews for $35, and special Tribute Dinner honoring Jose Andres and hosted by Anthony Bourdain for $500. If after a day of eating and drinking you are still up for more may we suggest:

Sunday February 26th

Many events again anchor the last day of SOBEWFF including the second day of Goya Foods Grand Tasting Village, more wine seminars, Brunch with Neil Patrick Harris or Trisha Yearwood and more. We like:

3:00-5:00 pm- $100- Grand Tasting On The Beach at Ocean Drive- For those of you who get a late start, the Goya Foods Grand Tasting Village will be open and NEW FOR 2017: SOBEWFF® is partnering with David Grutman to bring you The David Grutman Experience at Sunday’s Goya Foods’ Grand Tasting Village! Recognized worldwide for his hotspots LIV, Story and Komodo, Grutman is bringing his signature over-the-top curated experiences straight to the sands of Miami Beach for the first time featuring sounds by INGROSSO, powered by N1CE Cocktails.

TIP: Follow @MIAbites on Instagramfor a chance to win two tickets for Sunday's Grand Tasting and David Grutman Experience in contest later in the month.

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MIAbites is a web-based community built by and for people who love food in and around the Miami area. We love to eat and we love to log time in our kitchens almost as much as we love our families and careers. If you let us, we’d like to be that friend of yours that always seems to know the right place to go, the right time to visit, and the right thing to order. By working together we can help each other get the most out of living in South Florida and make each bite count. If this sounds like your kind of project, please join us in bringing it to life. We may be building the site, but it’s your community.

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